Collection of Dilip Kumar Maite

My friend Indrajit Chaudhuri discussing with Dilip Maite (right) Mr. Dilip Kumar Maite is one of the earliest collectors of artifacts from the Chandraketugarh site. His collection, officially refered to as the Chandraketugarh Pratna Sangrahalaya, is located in his residential house, on the Taki Road only about 30 meters from the Berachampa's More. He pointed out the peculiarity of the site in that the ancient city is "still" buried under the ground and due to the lack of any permanently excavated area, visitors do not see anything memorable. Reflecting Asad-uj Jaman's sentiment, he mentioned that a local museum is much needed for proper collection and preservation of the artifacts, as well as for the awareness of the public. With a bitter smile, he however let it out that his efforts towards this goal for the last few decades haven't met with any success, largely due to organizational apathy.
My addition: Khana-Mihirer Dhipi is the only permanently excavated site for visitors in the Chandraketugarh area, but the lack of any locally available information makes it rather an unrewarding experience for an uninitiated visitor. I am not thinking of anything fancy, even a simple information leaflet made available to the visitors at the site will be very helpful. The notice board of the ASI only mentions the law sub-class which enforces the Protected Area status of the site, and doesn't say anything about its history. I have noticed the same thing at several monuments in Delhi. So, if you don't come ready with the history of the site, you are not going to find it out there.

Mr. Maite has written the following books on Chandraketugarh, each including local mythological stories and the archeological wealth of the area. All the books are in Bengali.

  • Ateet Alokey Chandraketugarh
    (Trans: Chandraketugarh in the Light of Past)
  • Garh Chandraketu'r Katha
    (Trans: The Tale of Chandraketugarh Fort)
  • Chandraketugarh
  • Itihase'y Deganga
    (Trans: Deganga in History)

Please click on the small images below to view their full size versions

For now, these photographs are displayed simply as an album, without any specific description or identification. In the next few weeks, I will sort them out in different thematic categories and write small descriptions.


Fragment Terracotta
Fragment Terracotta, two birds
Fragment Terracotta, elephant, many people
Rattle


Terracotta head

Buddha


Shree, the goddess of wealth and fortune
Head of ram
Yaksha? Ferocious face
Head in terracotta fragment


Beautiful woman with flowing hair

Circular pattern, significance?
Earthen pottery


Earthen pottery
Female figure with asymmetrical headgear and a feather attached to it
Mithuna scene
Mithuna scene


Mithuna scene
Mithuna scene

Mr. Goutam Dey's photographs from the collection of Mr. Dilip Kumar Maite

Mr. Goutam Dey, a resident of Berachampa has recently sent me the following photographs of fascinating objects from the collection of Mr. Dilip Kumar Maite. Mr. Dey will send me further descriptions on these objects.

Please click on the small images below to view their full size versions
















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Chandraketugarh - First Page
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State Archeological Museum Exhibition
Collection of Asad-uj Jaman
Photos from ASI Reviews
Temporary Exhibition at Indian Museum
My photos of Khana-Mihirer Dhipi
My photos of Chandraketugarh area (trees, ricefields...)
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Ambarish Goswami
Last Revised July 4, 2004